// Sports Direct acquires Brookfield Shopping Park for just over £25m
// The shopping park measures 93,000sq ft
Sports Direct has announced the acquisition of Brookfield Shopping Park in Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, as part of a £25.4 million deal.
In mid-September, it was reported that Sports Direct founder and owner Mike Ashley was preparing to buy the park.
The shopping park measures 93,000sq ft and has been sold to Ashley for a third of the price that vendor JP Morgan Asset Management had paid in 2015, which was £62.2 million.
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“We are already working hard on plans to breathe new life into Brookfield Shopping Park,” Sports Direct head of elevation Michael Murray said.
“We believe in bricks & mortar retail and plan to transform this retail park into a modern, aspirational shopping destination for the local area.”
Sports Direct said the shopping park is “set to receive significant investment”, which will include a total modernisation of the exterior of all store facias.
Plans also include new leisure, hospitality and retail offerings including Sports Direct, USC and luxury multi-brand retailer Flannels.
Ashley’s acquisition of the park comes amid a buying spree for the businessman, who has been heavily criticised by shareholders for buying numerous struggling high street retailers, including House of Fraser – a deal he has since described as “nothing short of terminal”.
Moreover, Ashley was re-elected to the board after gaining 90.99 per cent of the shareholder vote at Sports Direct’s AGM in September.
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